Loafing Areas for Horses: Solving the Problem of Dust and Mud

When they’re not busy eating, many horses like to stand singly or in small groups, swishing flies and watching the world go by. They often choose a favorite area in the field, frequently near a fence or gate, and this spot becomes a patch of bare dirt due to the stomping of many hooves.

As winter approaches, more frequent rains turn these dry, dusty areas into sticky, slippery mudholes that just get bigger and deeper as the season progresses, a situation that many horse owners simply accept as a consequence of keeping large animals at pasture.

For a relatively low cost, this cycle of summer dust and winter mud can be permanently derailed. The answer to the problem is to install a hoofproof pad topped with dense-grade aggregate, or DGA. Topsoil is first removed and a geotextile is put down under a layer or midgrade gravel. A top layer of DGA is installed and compacted to provide a smooth surface. The geotextile keeps the gravel from being pushed down into the soil and disappearing after a few years.